The art of lacquer is found throughout Europe and Asia, and the lacquer produced in Myanmar (Burma) is among the best in Eurasia. Known as "Pan-Yun" in Burmese, it is one of the highes forms of art in Myanmar. It requires great skill on the part of the artist. Black lacquer is the most commonly used, but an orange lacquer (normally called "Red lacquer") is also used. Both come from the sap of the Melanorrohea Usitata tree, a tropical hardwood.

The artist begins with a bamboo or, rarely, teak base. He then coats with with a layer of lacquer mixed with ashes and leaves it in a cellar to dry. He repeats this until there are 5 layers, then he adds two more layers of pure lacquer. When it comes time to add color, the artist scratches out lines for one color with a very fine knife, then mixes one colorant with water and spreads the paste over the item. After letting it set for several days, he wipes off the colorant (which remains in the lines), puts a resin over the colored lines, and starts over with the next color. This continues until all the colors are added. He then polishes the piece with fine talcum powder to remove the resin and make the item shine. The result is what you see here.